Meet the online mentor for AdPR's Social Media Certificate Program

Craig Ewer

AdPR now has the only online non-credit, social media certificate program offered by a university. “Using Social Media to Build Business” is designed to give young professionals and small businesses the insights they need specifically to use the most important social media platforms to generate results. 

The course also has a working PR professional as a full-time professional coach mentor available for questions: Craig Ewer, who reflects on his experience with the program thus far.

Meet Craig Ewer

Craig Ewer currently works at Glover Park Group in Washington D.C. on the digital team. His work includes advising clients on the best practices of public policy and digital strategy as well as helping to change opinions about different brands and nonprofits.

His involvement with the social media certificate program began when he was approached to act as a mentor.

“I saw it as a great opportunity to build skills through teaching skills to others. There are different challenges and different best practices for working with small and large brands,” he says.

Certificate Program in Social Media

The program is intended to give students a strong grasp of how and what content to publish on social platforms. The online course is self-guided, supplemented with textbooks and quizzes at the end of each module. Assignments include creating a blog and Twitter and using them to improve and practice skills taught in the courses.

For the future, Ewer hopes that the program will attract higher involvement and expand lessons based on emerging social networks like Instagram and Pinterest.

“It’s been a joy to work with the faculty and employees of UGA. It’s a strong program and I look forward to continuing my work in the future.”

The online course runs $549 and takes 44 hours to complete. Graduates earn a certificate from UGA and 4.4 continuing education credits. Visit www.socialmediauga.com for details.

AdPR Alum Spotlight: Aline Adams

Aline Adams graduated from UGA in 2011 with a major in Advertising and a minor in Sociology. She currently lives in Washington, D.C.

What are you doing now and how did you get there?

I currently work at Glover Park Group, a Public and Government Affairs–focused communications firm with offices in Washington, D.C., New York City, Los Angeles, and Boulder, CO., in the Creative Services practice area. I began my career in D.C. with an internship in Senator Mary Landrieu's press office the summer before my senior year. The summer after I graduated, I interned at Burson-Marsteller in the Advertising practice area known as Proof Integrated Communications. Working in creative departments has been a great way to begin my career, as it has allowed me to use my PR, advertising, and design skills in my work. I also have the opportunity to work with a variety of clients in the Healthcare, Financial Services, Entertainment, and Media fields, and with internal GPG members to create creative content for strategic, policy-focused campaigns.

What is your favorite Grady memory?

The PRSSA Washington, D.C. tour, of course! I also attended the Ad Club/PRSSA New York City agency tour in the fall of 2010. The amount of information thrown at you in these three days in invaluable. We were given real world advice, resume critiques, and encouraged to network with the agency professionals, all while tromping around the District with fellow Grady classmates and professors. By the last day of the trip, some of us had written published blog posts, Tweets, and Facebook posts! I would highly recommend these trips to anyone considering a post-college job in the field.

What advice to you have for current AdPR students?

Intern, intern, intern! During summers, seek out internships in cities where you would like to live and work. Especially in D.C., it is important to employers to have a local address on your resumé, signifying you are ready to begin working immediately. Most entry-level PR jobs are filled through word-of-mouth recommendations, so touch base with professionals in your network often. People get busy or distracted so don't be afraid to follow up with a brief email or phone call. After interviews, send around handwritten thank you notes to whomever you met. Stay relevant and on top of trends in the news. Attend networking events whenever possible and then follow up. When you do have an internship, make an effort to go above and beyond what is expected of you.

In addition: Always double-check everything you do and and ask for feedback throughout, not just at the end. Don't be afraid to speak up, learn from your mistakes, and demonstrate a hard-working and positive attitude. Good luck!